Day of Black Sun
by C. F Hamilton
Summary: The Day of Black Sun, the darkest day in Fire Nation history, but why was that day so different from the solar eclipse centuries later? Xia, the child of a poor family, was touched by the Sun Spirit as a baby. Chosen to train Prince Zihao, their lives are only about to begin.
1. Prologue

**Prologue: Day of Black Sun**

The sun is beating down on the city during the Fire Nation's hottest day of the year. Most citizens would be discouraged from venturing outside. However, for a man known by the name of Cheung, the climate's heat couldn't be any better for him to accomplish his goal. The neighbors who saw him run out of his house thought it odd of him, hadn't his wife just given birth? Had he or she looked closely enough they would have noticed Cheung carrying a small bundle in his arms.

The small bundle in question is the reason for Cheung's urgency. For he is carrying his first born child, his daughter, whom stopped breathing correctly not long after she was born. Her breaths are coming out shallow and inconsistent. The infant's mother noticed the breathing change almost immediately. Soon yelling for her husband he began to try to find someone, anyone, who could help. However, his attempts have been fruitless thus far, and so now Cheung fears he only has one option left, and time is running out.

"Oh, great Spirits, please let me make it on time!"

Climbing the massive steps up to the highest point in the nation, Cheung wheezes his way over to the large shrine in the center of the hill. Looking up at the sun before walking into the shrine, he notices that the sun is at its highest point in the sky. Hoping that that is a good sign, Cheung kneels down before the everlasting flame and begins to pray to the Sun Spirit, Ri. The shrine was originally created around the flame, for it is legend that the flame is the symbol of the Sun Spirit and has never dwindled in strength, forever remaining an electric blue, showing its intense heat.

"Please, please spirit of the sun. Please, save my daughter."

Cheung says this like a chant, never differing from those last four words. All the while hoping that his name's sake will somehow help as well.

"Please, save my daughter. Please, save my daughter. Please, save my—What?"

Cheung's amber eyes widen in shock when the fire begins to form around his daughter. After a minute or so, the infant's eyes begin to open and her breathing becomes regular once more. She even has enough energy to begin fussing in her father's arms.

Looking into her eyes Cheung is confused. The first time she looked at him she had amber eyes, like his. Signifying she would be a fire bender. Now, however, they are a light blue. As light a blue as the fire that just engulfed her in a harmless flame.

"What could this mean?"

Cheung didn't think about it too long though. He cradles his daughter in his arms and begins to lightly jog back to his home to tell his wife the good news.

The moment he came into seeing distance of his house Cheung saw his wife, Ling looking out a mirror. Cheung could see the dried tears that streaked her face and was rapturous when her pained face tuned into one of relief once she saw her child alive and well in her father's embrace. Running out of the house, Ling kisses her husband deeply on the lips before taking the baby into her arms and kissing her nose, her cheeks, and her forehead. Cheung gently guided his wife and child inside their house, finally away from the scorching heat.

"What did you do?" Ling asked,

"I went to the Sun Shrine and prayed to the Sun Spirit. Ri must have heard my prayers because the fire enveloped her and then she was healthy and normal again. Except…"

"Except?"

Ling fussed over her daughter, trying to find some defect with her. After she could find none she looked to her husband,

"Her eyes, they're now blue like the hottest form of fire."

Ling looks to see and sure enough, her daughters eyes were now and electric blue.

"Well, never mind that. What's important now is that she's healthy and safe"

"You're right"

Cheung agrees, he leans to kiss his wife's forehead and let's his daughter grab his index finger with her entire fist,

"What shall we name her?"

Ling thinks for a while then,

"She was touched by the Sun Spirit, her name shall be Xia"

"It suits her"

Later that evening, while the family of three is sound asleep, Cheung begins to toss and turn with his dreams.

Standing in a land of nothing but fog, Cheung looks around for something he's unaware he's looking for. 

"_Cheung," _

Cheung looks around for whoever called him but still doesn't see anything,

"_I am here, Cheung, I am The Sun Spirit, Ri. I heard your pleads today at my shrine and helped your daughter. However, I am here to tell you that one day I may be in need of the life I gave to her. Nothing is for sure, of course, but being touched by a spirit comes with a price._

Cheung is shocked for words, he doesn't know how to respond and next thing he knows the land of the awake beckons him…

Cheung springs upright in bed and looks over to his sleeping wife then his sleeping child. Getting up, he walks over to Xia's crib and strokes her hair,

"What did he mean, it comes with a price?"

As he mumbles this, Cheung can't help but worry that something will one day happen to his precious daughter. Praying that day won't come in his lifetime, he walk back over to his bed with his wife and goes to sleep once more, this time without any visions from the spirits.

**A/N: Hello there! This idea came to me during an avatar party I had with a couple of my friends. Anyway, I thought it was a good idea and so I'd appreciate it if any readers would comment and tell me what you think about it. If you like this idea, dislike the idea and so on. But no flaming, I dislike that highly, it's rude and inconsiderate of the writer. Also, Cheung means good fortune; Ling means compassion and understanding, Xia mean sunrise and this starts at the year 458 B.A.R…which is an easier way of saying Before Aang is Rescued, you know, from the ice berg. Which is also, from what research I could find, during the time of avatar Kuruk, from the water tribe.**

**Love, Pastry~**


	2. You Have Been Invited

**Chapter One: You Have Been Invited**

It is an early morning, during the beginning of the fall season. The temperature in the Fire Nation was starting to cool down a bit, not enough so that a tourist would notice but for the civilians, the change was drastic.

Fire Lord Tingzhe is sitting in his throne room in the capital of Caldera. His meeting with the nations generals was almost complete and Tingzhe wanted to leave as quickly as possible. His faithful attendant had informed him of someone who could train his son to become a great fire-bending master. That information alone was enough for the Fire Lord to completely dismiss this meeting from his thoughts. Finally the generals stood up, bowed to Tingzhe, and left the throne room.

"Finally",

The Fire Lord mumbles,

"Da! Come here!"

A middle aged man, adorning long robes, enters the room and bows to his Lord,

"Yes, my Lord?"

"Call my son for an audience. Also, send two of the Sages to find this fire-bending master. What's his name again?"

"She, my Lord. Her name is Xia"

Tingzhe had forgotten the fact that the master was a female. He isn't sure if he wants his son being taught by a woman. Though he knows that if his wife, Fire Lady Wen, found out he skipped on the opportunity of having his son learn from a great fire bender, she'd never let him live it down.

"Hmm, are you sure about this bender?"

"Yes, my Lord, I've heard that she's the best in the world. A prodigy, perhaps surpassing the power of some of the generals, rumor has it she was touched by the Sun Spirit as an infant and her fire is blue!"

"Very well then, send the Sages."

"Of course, my Lord."

With that Da went on his way to carry out his orders, first sending two Fire Sages to find the master, then setting off to find prince Zihao. After searching the usual spots where the prince loiters and having no luck finding him. Da finally discovers him in the Royal Arena, training with his previous master.

"Prince Zihao,"

Stopping with their training, the master bows respectfully before leaving the two alone and Zihao looks expectantly at Da,

"Yes? What is it Da?"

"Prince, your father requests and audience with you"

Zihao sighs, shrugs, and then starts to move towards the Arena's exit.

After wiping his face with a hot towel, Zihao follows Da into the throne room to his awaiting father. Once hearing the quick footsteps enter the throne room, Fire Lord Tingzhe looks up to see his first-born kneel in front of the flames that separate the Fire Lord from the audience.

"You wished to see me father?"

"Yes, Zihao, tomorrow you will have a new fire-bending master teach you."

"What? But father, I already have a master"

"Yes, and you have already surpassed him in talent. Da has told me that this fire bender is much ore powerful and quite the prodigy herself"

"She? You'll have a woman teach me father?"

"Yes, well, I've heard great things about her so if any of those rumors are true then she will be a great teacher to you"

Zihao purses his lips and only responds when his father sends him a certain look,

"Yes, father",

And with that Zihao takes his leave.

The two Fire Sages travel into the town by carriage, the town in which the fire bender they are looking for lives. The sun has set and the Sages are running out of time to find an inn to stay in and find this girl known as Xia. Once they pass an inn, the two decide to stop and rest for the night. As they walk in, the innkeeper looks up and smiles at his new customers, bowing after noticing the two are Sages,

"Room for two?"

The two Sages, Fu and Fa, look to one another, then nod to the innkeeper.

"Right this way, then"

The keeper leads the two to their temporary room for the night and is about to bid them a good night when Fu asks,

"Do you know of a fire bender named Xia in this town?"

"Xia? Well, yes, she's the daughter of a friend of mine. Cheung, he's the local carpenter, practically built this inn himself. Why are you looking for her?"

"The Fire Lord wishes for her to teach prince Zihao more advanced fire bending"

"What an honor!"  
"Would you tell us where we might find her?"

"Surely, Xia should still be at the local arena. She helps out there with the young benders and stays afterward to clean up for the next morning session. It's not too late, she should still be there."

Fu and Fa look at each other and silently decide to head out once more to this arena. They tell the innkeeper they'll be back soon and head out to find Xia. Sooner rather than later, the two arrive at the local arena.

"Hello here, may I help you?"

At the sound of a young girl's voice the Sages look over their shoulders to find the person they've been looking for,

"Might you be Xia?"

Fa asks,

"Yes"

She replies warily. The two Sages bow to her and Fu says,

"You have been invited by the Fire Lord himself to enter the capital and train his son, prince Zihao, in fire bending."

At the news Xia's mouth slackened and she became speechless. After a few moments of silence Fu finally asks,

"Will you come?"

"I, um, yes! It'd be my honor to train prince Zihao! Of course, I'll have to tell my parents…"

"That is acceptable. Fa and I wish to leave tomorrow morning so that we might reach the capital by nightfall. You will meet us at the local inn tomorrow morning as soon as you can. You won't need to pack heavily, the maids at the Palace will be able to attend to anything you need while you are there."

"R-right! Well, I'll see you tomorrow morning"

Xia bows accordingly to Fa and Fu and runs to the back of the arena, on her way home. While the Sages make their way back to the inn.

After the two Sages left, Xia finished tidying up the arena and began her run home. Once her house was in sight she could see her father picking up firewood from their storage house next to their small main house.

"Father!"

At the sound of his daughter's voice, Cheung looks up to see his daughter running towards him,

"Xia! Is something the matter?"

He asks once she is in front of him, panting,

"No! Something wonderful has just happened! Two Fire Sages came looking for me and said that the Fire Lord himself has asked me to come to the capital to train prince Zihao!"

Like father, like daughter, Cheung's mouth slackened and he dropped the firewood,

"Come inside! We must tell your mother! She'll be so happy"

"But Father, the firewood!"

Cheung paused, then let out a heartily laugh,

"Right, I completely forgot!"

Xia helps him pick up the wood and then they enter the house together and immediately Cheung cries out,

"Ling! Ling, come here! Xia's got great news!"

"What is it dear?"

Ling asks, coming into the foyer from the kitchen, the smell of noodle soup wafting from the other room.

"She's been asked by the _Fire Lord himself_ to come to the _capital_ and teach _prince_ Zihao fire bending! Isn't that great?"

"Way to let me tell mother"

Xia joked and her father rubs the back of his head,

"Sorry, dear"

Ling simply smiles and pulls her daughter into a warm hug and whispers,

"Congratulations my darling"

Xia returns the hug and murmurs a,

"Thank you"

"When do they want you to leave?"

"Tomorrow morning"

"Then you might want to start packing! I'll keep your soup warm until you're ready"

"Thanks mother"

With that Xia went to her room to begin packing, keeping in mind to pack light. Meanwhile, her parents walk into the kitchen, chatting about their daughter's good fortune.

The next day arrives almost too quickly for Xia. As instructed, she packed as lightly as possible, only carrying clothes and instruments needed to train along with a few day and night clothes; all fitting in a single, medium sized, bag. Walking towards the inn where the sages said to meet up, Xia thinks about what she'll do once she reaches the capital,

"_I wonder what the royal family looks like. Will prince Zihao like me? What am I thinking? He's the prince! He'll probably only think of me as his teacher, if that. Hopefully he won't simply dismiss me as a commoner… though he almost certainly will…" _

Xia continued to have thoughts such as these until Fa brought her out of her reverie,

"Are you ready to leave for the capital?"

After looking back down the road the leads to her home, she replies,

"Yes, I'm completely ready"

And with that, the three were off.

**A/N: Hello there! I'm proud to say that this story has gotten 11 visitors in just one day! Yay! Also, thanks to tenneyshoes for being the first to review. If anyone was wondering, I get most of my sources from wikiavatar and the reason why Xia going to the capital is such a big idea is because if you're not royal you can't enter the capital unless personally invited by the Fire Lord, which is very rare. Now, Tingzhe= may the court be wise, Wen= refinement, Da=intelligent, Fu=wealthy, Fa= setting off and Zihao= heroic son.**

**Love, Pastry~**


	3. It's A Pleasure To Meet You

**Chapter Two: It's A Pleasure To Meet You**

Inside the carriage is mostly silent, none of the three passengers attempt to start a conversation with one another and this aspect creates quite the awkward scenario for Xia. Not only is she nervous beyond her wits from the fact that she'll be meeting the crowned prince of the Fire Nation, but now she's becoming equally nervous of long ride ahead of her thanks to the two silent Sages.

"So, what's it like in the capital?"

Xia asks, trying to break the silence,

"Beautiful, I suppose, you'll see for yourself soon"

Although she's not sure weather it is Fu or Fa who answers, Xia sighs all the same.

"If you don't mind me asking, Master Xia, why are you're eyes blue and not amber, like ours?"

"Yes, I've been wondering that myself…"

"Oh, well, my father claims that when I was born they were amber, but then apparently when I was touched by the Sun Spirit, my eyes turned blue. My father alleges that it symbolizes the hottest form fire can take."

The two Sages nod, though they have their suspicions on whether or not Xia was truly touched by the spirit. However, as long as she's a good bender and can train their prince, they don't care all that much about the rumors that surround her.

"Is your fire really blue?"

Fu asks, for this is a rumor that can be proven quite easily,

"Yes,"

Xia says while nodding once,

"Shall I prove it?"

Fu and Fa nod politely while waiting excitedly to see Xia's demonstration. Xia demonstrated a simple fire dagger, as to not damage the carriage in any way, and sure enough her fire was blue; the same color as her eyes.

"That's quite impressive Master Xia. However, you will have to do better than that if you wish to remain prince Zihao's teacher."

"Thank you for the concern, but I have more tricks up my sleeve than that."

And with that, Xia nervously brushed a hand through her dark locks and was silent for the rest of the ride.

The moment the carriage stopped, Xia looked outside and her jaw drops once again. Of course she had seen painting of the palace before but she had never expected it to be this huge!

"Master Xia?"

"What? Oh, um, yes?"

"Are you ready?"

"Y-yes!"

Fa helps Xia out of the carriage and hands her bag to a servant that has arrived to greet them.

"This man will take you to your room, Master Xia. There you will clean yourself up and prepare yourself to meet with the Fire Lord. Please do not dally; the Fire Lord does not appreciate tardiness."

Xia nods and begins to follow the servant into the palace.

"This will be your room while you stay here, Master Xia. Once you are finished preparing yourself, I am to escort you to the throne room to meet the Fire Lord and prince Zihao."

He then nods and takes a step back to wait across the hall. Xia nods her head and enters the room.

"Whoa,"

She whispers,

"This room is larger than my house!"

After gazing around for a few seconds, Xia remembers what one of the Sages said about the Fire Lord disliking tardiness. Shuffling quickly into the room's bathroom, Xia wipes a cold, wet, cloth over her face. Runs a comb through her hair before tying it up in a simple, yet elegant style. Finishing off her preparation by throwing on the best dress she brought with her, Xia double checks herself in a mirror and exits the room. The servant was still waiting for her and bows once she enters his sight.

"This way, Master Xia"

Moments of silence pass between the two with no sign of the throne room in sight, and Xia tries to break the ice,

"What's your name?"

This question startles the man; he gives her a look of utter confusion and then begins to walk even faster,

"I do not see how that is of any importance, Master Xia"

"You can just call me Xia, it's fine"

Xia smiles at him and he tries to hide a blush of embarrassment,

"That is quite improper, Master Xia"

"Why?"

"You are of higher rank than I, therefore I must address you by your title"

Xia frowns,

"_What makes me any better than him? Though I suppose he's right to some extent, it's not as if I can call the Fire Lord by his name. That would simply be indecent."_

"You can still tell me your name"

The servant eyes her but eventually gives in,

"Jaw-Long, my name is Jaw-Long"

"That's a nice name"

"Thank you"

Finally the two arrive at the entrance t the throne room, the two bid each other a temporary farewell and Xia enters the room. The first thing that draws her attention is the veil of flames that separate her from the Fire Lord. She walks over to the center where she bows down and kneels in front of Fire Lord Tingzhe.

"So you are the fire-bending master known as Xia"

"Yes, my Lord"

"Good. I hear that your fire bending abilities are quite astounding. I do hope you can help my son advance even more in the fire ways"

"I shall do my best, my Lord"

"Very well then. Zihao, come in here please, I know you're watching from behind that curtain."

Xia's eyes widen in shock as the Fire Lord says this. A sheepish chuckle sounds from behind one of the decorative curtains on the side of the room,

"Sorry, father, I didn't mean to pry—"

"Yes you did, otherwise you would have stayed outside as I had instructed"

"Er, right. Well, I'm here now anyway"

"Right, Zihao, this is Xia, your new fire-bending master"

Xia stands up and faces Zihao. Zihao warily walks over to her, once they are facing each other they bow respectfully.

"Well then, that is all. You two may discuss training times outside in the hall."

"Yes, father"

"Yes, my Lord"

After the couple bow to Tingzhe they exit the thrown room. Zihao coughs nervously to break the silence,

"So can you really bend blue fire?"

Xia laughs a bit at this question, her nerves fluttering away,

"Yes, my fire is blue, prince"

"How is that?"

"Well, prince Zihao, I'm not all that sure. It started out red, but as I grew older my fire grew hotter. If I had to guess, I would say it's because I was touched by the Sun Spirit"

"Really? So that wasn't just some rumor?"

"No, the Sun Spirit really did give me some of his life. It's the only reason I am here today, prince"

"As well as the reason why your eyes are blue, I suspect"

"You are correct, prince Zihao"

Zihao chuckles at Xia and she returns him a look of confusion,

"Just call me Zihao, Xia. You don't have to be so formal with me"

At this statement Xia bites down slightly on her bottom lip. The previous conversation with Jaw-Long ringing in her head

"_You are of higher rank than I, therefore I must address you by your title"_

Snapping out of her reverie, Xia responds,

"I'm sorry prince Zihao, that would be indecent on my part"

Zihao frowns,

"Then shall I address you as Master Xia?"

"N-no! It's fine, Xia is fine"

"Well then, I don't think that's fair, _Xia_"

Zihao chuckles while over-enunciating Xia's name, stepping closer to her, Zihao comes face to face with Xia, enjoying watching her fidget under his stare,

"W-why?"

She stutters out as a blush creeps onto her face. Xia is not used to a male invading her personal space like this, unless it was during a duel.

"Because, if you call me by a title then how are we supposed to train together as equals. I should at least be able to level the playing field by calling you by a title"

Xia remains silent for some time, chewing on her bottom lip. Until finally she comes up with an answer,

"Fine, then as your master I order you to not call me by any title. Anyway, I thought we could start training tomorrow in the morning, after you've had breakfast"

Zihao takes a step back to look at her, a smirk still plastered onto his face,

"Alright, _Xia_. Would you at least grant me with your presence at dinner tonight?"

Xia eyes him suspiciously, not appreciating the way her name rolls off his tongue.

"Sorry, prince Zihao, but instead of focusing on who will be gracing your presence tonight, perhaps you should prepare for tomorrows training session."

Now it is Xia's turn to smirk. Zihao's face twisted into one of pure shock, no girl has ever denied him of a request. Ever.

"I'm sorry, did you just say no?"

"Yes, I said no"

All Zihao does is blink several times and then grimace,

"Well then, I'll see you tomorrow I suppose"

"Yes, see you tomorrow, _prince_ Zihao"

And with that last statement, Xia begins to walk back towards the direction of her room, leaving a speechless prince in her wake.

The next morning arrives exactly on schedule and Xia is awake and ready by sunrise. The breaking of dawn happens to be Xia's favorite part of the day. Not just because of her connection with Ri, just because of how alive she feels every time she watches the start of a new day.

After taking a quick morning bath, compliments of the palace maids, Xia pulls her now damp hair into a high pony tail, only a few short strands escaping and falling on the sides of her face. Once adorning her training outfit, consisting of a tank top cut off at the midriff and Capri pants that lie on her hips with leg protectors, designed in shades of red; Xia quickly eats a light breakfast then makes her way out of her room towards the royal Arena.

"Oh! Good morning Jaw-Long, how are you today?"

"Very well, thank you Master Xia. I am here to show you to the Arena"

"That's a relief, I thought I might have to search around blindly"

Xia laughs at her own joke but Jaw-Long answers seriously,

"That would be most unwise, Master Xia"

"Oh, r-right. I didn't mean…anyway, do you know if prince Zihao almost ready for this morning's training?"

"I hear that the prince has just recently awoken. He should be fully prepared within the hour"

Xia grimaces at the news, she hadn't expected to be delayed that much.

"_Oh well,"_

She thinks,

"_This way I'll be able to get a lay of the land"_

So off she went…

The moment Zihao awoke he realized he was already late for his first day of training with Xia. Although he feels bad, that fact doesn't stop him from going through his morning rituals with an easy pace. He wakes up and immediately a hot breakfast is served in front of him, then he goes to take a nice warm bath. He lingers here for several moments enjoying the warmth, while telling himself it is needed to relax his muscles before a hard workout.

Finally, he leaves the bath, towels off, and sees that his training clothes have been placed on his bed. His outfit austerely consists of red Capri pants with leg protectors and, of course, his armbands signifying his royalty.

"Servant!"

A young woman comes into Zihao's room and bows respectfully,

"Yes, prince Zihao?"

"Brush my hair"

"Yes, prince"

She pulls a comb from one of her pocket robes, only to be used on royalty, and begins to comb through Zihao's slightly tangled, shoulder length, hair. Zihao begins to think about the events that happened yesterday with himself and Xia,

"_This girl seems to be the same age as Xia, sure she's not as attractive as Xia but I have known her longer. So why have I never asked her to call me by name, without a title? I usually don't do that, come to think of it. And why did she reject me? No woman has ever done that! I never thought the day would come but I suppose it had to happen eventually…"_

Zihao covers part of his face with his hand, subconsciously trying to smother a blush. Looking himself over in the mirror he doesn't understand how Xia could be un-attracted to him. Zihao knows that even if he weren't the prince of the Fire Nation, women would still flock to him over his good looks.

"_It just doesn't make sense"_

"Is everything alright, prince Zihao? You look red, might you have a fever?"

"I'm perfectly fine. Are you almost finished?"

"Yes, prince, I just need to place your headpiece on"

"Of course,"

Zihao stands up, walks over to his nightstand, and grabs his head piece that signifies that he is the crowned prince,

"Here"

He says, handing her the piece before sitting back down before the mirror,

"There you are, prince, I shall take me leave now"

"Very well"

The girl leaves the room and Zihao looks at his reflection intently. As the servant had said, his face is tinted red. Zihao shakes his head, blaming it on today's upcoming training,

"_Crap! I'm so late for training! Xia's going to kill me!" _

Zihao stand up and abruptly runs out of the room. He bursts from the doors and is ready to run down the halls to the Arena when he catches a glimpse of Xia standing across the hall, leaning against the wall,

"There you are! What took you so long, prince Zihao?"

"Xia! H-how long have you been waiting out here?"

"Long enough, prince, are you ready?"

"Yes,"

"Good"

Xia takes the lead and walks down the hallways towards the Arena,

"Oh, prince?"

"Yes?"

"Just so you know, since you kept me waiting for so long, today's training is going to be unbearable"

Xia smirks as she says this, Zihao grimaces. Though he knows it's only fair,

"Great…" 

**A/N: Hello there! Great news, I had two reviews last chapter! So once again thank you tenneyshoes and anonymous reviewer. Though I still encourage other to review so that I know others enjoy the story. Also, I'm not sure if they measure time in the avatar world but I had to put hour in there, I didn't know how else to describe that part and I tried to describe their agni kai outfits so I did my best on that. Finally, Jaw-Long= like a dragon. I thought it was clever.**

**Love,**

**Pastry~**


	4. Indecision

**Chapter Three: Indecision**

When the pair eventually reached the Royal Arena, Xia makes a sharp turn and faces Zihao. His face is that of confusion with a tint of fear.

"Are you ready?"

"…Sure"

Xia snorts sarcastically at his response,

"Sure. Go down to the other end of the room. We're having an Agni Kai so that I can determine how powerful you are. This is not for honor or anything, but not just for sport either so take it seriously, prince Zihao"

"An Agni Kai? Seriously? Don't you think that's a bit harsh to start out with?"

"Well, prince Zihao, we were going to start out with some breathing exercises, but then I changed my mind while I was waiting for you to get your hair made up"

"Oh, right…"

"Ready? Since we don't have anyone to hit a gong for us, we'll just turn around on my count of three"

"Sure, sure"

The two turn around so that their backs face each other, as is the proper way to start an Agni Kai,

"One…two…three!"

Zihao starts off his attack with a powerful fire whip aimed at Xia. Xia in return begins to run towards the flames, shocking Zihao. Once the flames are close enough to touch her, she releases her charged up fire, sending blue ember against Zihao's. Xia's fire immediately dissipates Zihao's and continues after him.

"Shit!"

Zihao screams before diving out of the way,

"Come on, prince Zihao, I told you not to hold back!"

Even though Zihao hears her say this, he has an inkling that she herself is holding back.

"Fine!"

Charging up his attack this time, he sends several fire disks her way. Not stopping there to watch the damage, Zihao runs in after his fire to go hand-to-hand fire bending against Xia; thinking this could be her downfall. Zihao sets off a firebomb as Xia's face comes into his view,

"Better, but still not good enough, prince!"

To block Zihao's disks, Xia puts up a wall of fire, though she knows this won't stand up to Zihao's firebomb. Using a more advanced technique, Xia destroys the firebomb with a swift jab. Zihao takes notice of this and uses jet propulsion to escape from Xia's attack range.

After another hour of Zihao attacking Xia with anything and everything he could think of, with Xia only defending herself, his moves soon become sluggish due to lack of endurance,

"Shall I finish this prince?"

Zihao only tries to regain his breath. Xia takes this opportunity to run towards him, finally on the offensive. Zihao watches in shock as she jumps up and kicks fire at him, he barely doges and by the time he's recovered Xia lands and kicks her leg up, almost jabbing his neck. Zihao's eyes are clenched shut, thinking she would attack him and scar him,

"Don't look so scared, prince, I wasn't going to hurt you"

Warily, he opens his eyes to see that Xia's foot is still only inches from his neck. Zihao coughs nervously and steps back. Xia places both her feet on the ground and smiles at him,

"You did well, you're exceptionally talented"

"I'm not as good as you though…"

Zihao takes a seat on the floor and motions for Xia to do the same,

"Well, that was to be expected. Otherwise, what would be the point of me teaching you? Hmm, prince?"

"I suppose…"

After several moments of silence, he asks,

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen, you?"

"Nineteen."

Zihao mumbles this, almost embarrassed and Xia looks at him softly, assuming what he's thinking,

"You know, prince Zihao, if I hadn't been touched by the Sun Spirit, I wouldn't be alive. The same goes for my bending, it wouldn't be nearly this powerful without the Sun Spirit. So when people assume that I'm a prodigy or something, it kind of frustrates me."

"Why?"

"Because, you're the _real_ prodigy. I'm just a phony that got lucky"

Zihao looks at Xia for a good minute before replying,

"You don't know that. I mean, you would have been a fire bender anyway, who's to say if you would've been a prodigy on your own or not"

Xia smiles softly at him,

"Anyway, I'm glad the Sun Spirit did save you. If he hadn't, then we never would have met and then where would I be? Being pampered thinking I was the greatest bender since the first dragon"

She laughs at his small joke. His eyes light up and smiles back,

"Thanks Zihao, that made me feel a little better"

Zihao's smile widens,

"You just called me Zihao"

Xia gasps and blushes immensely,

"I-I didn't mean t-to I mean, um…"

"I like it"

"W-what?"

"I'd prefer it if you'd just call me by my name. It's less formal that way"

"B-but-!"

"No buts, you can't take it back now, Xia"

Xia hides her face in her hands, covering her embarrassment,

"You're horrible, Zihao"

"I know"

He laughs boldly and is about to stand up when Xia asks,

"Where are you going?"

"Why? Will you miss me once I leave?"

"Oh ha-ha, I meant that we're not done with today's training, so where are you going?"

"We're not done?"

"Nope, not by a long shot"

Xia stands up and almost laughs at Zihao's slumped shoulders,

"Come on now, get into a ready position"

Zihao does as he is told, grumbling as he does it, and gets into a fighting stance.

"Your stance is too vulnerable. Your feet need to be father apart otherwise your opponent will be able to knock you down easily"

"No one's been able to do that before"

"You've never fought against an earth bender before, have you?"

Xia asks this rhetorically, assuming he's never even seen an earth bender before,

"And you need to tuck your elbows in more, the elbows must never go past your knees"

As she says this, Xia moves behind him to grab Zihao's arms to show him where they should be. However, she misses the blush that appears on Zihao's face.

"That's better! This stance is much more efficient"

"O-okay"

"Now keep that stance, I'll be right back"

"Where are you going?"

"Don't worry, I just need to get something real fast"

Several minutes passed before Xia returned to the Arena to find Zihao in the same position she left him,

"Good, now hold this, but don't leave the stance!"

Zihao looks at what she's given him and sees a small leaf,

"What am I supposed to do with this?"

Xia smiles and places her pinky finger on top of the leaf. A hole burns in the center of the leaf,

"I want you to keep the leaf from burning completely for as long as you can"

"But that's so boring!"

"Oh, hush! It's to determine how much control you have"

"Whatever"

Zihao focus on the burning leaf, trying to keep it from turning to a crisp. Xia leans against a wall before slouching down to the floor, starting some breathing exercises. After at least an hour has passed Zihao starts to become impatient,

"How much longer do I have to do this?"

Xia opens one eye and looks at him,

"How's that leaf going?"

"This is stupid, Xia."

She sighs and gets up from her spot on the floor to look at the leaf's progress,

"Not bad, but I see that you lost focus a bit, it's no longer a circle, more like a squiggle."

"Gee, thanks"

"You just need to focus more. Anyway, we're done for today"

"Thank the spirits!"  
Zihao exclaims before he collapses to the floor. Xia bends down next to him,

"You're such a drama queen"

"Shut up Xia"

She laughs and he smiles in return,

"Want to have dinner with me tonight?"

The laughter stops,

"Prince Zihao…"

"What happened to just Zihao? You were doing so well Xia!"

"Prince Zihao, having dinner with you would be improper. It's not my place to—"

"Oh, come on Xia, having dinner with me is no big deal"

"Not to you, you're the prince! For me, though, it's like a breach of social ladder. The only reason you even talk to me is because I'm your teacher, that's the way it should be"

"That's a load of crap, Xia."

"Not to me…"

Zihao sighs and leans back to lie on the floor, Xia stands up and begins to leave the Arena,

"I'll see you tomorrow, Zihao. And, please, try to be on time"

Zihao watches her leave with a hint of grief in his eyes,

"_At least she dropped my title again"_

He thinks, also knowing he won't give up on her that easily,

"_You will have dinner with me Xia, one day…"_

**A/N: Hello all! Hope you liked this chapter, please review and such! I'd really appreciate it. Um, I believe that's all for now. Hope you like the characters; I'm really becoming fond of them myself. I'm trying to keep the chapters long so that more and more interesting things happen.**

**Love,**

**Pastry~ **


	5. Fantasy of the Festival

Chapter Four: Fantasy of the Festival

As Xia walks back to her room she can't but think,

"Is Zhao just playing with me? Or is he serious? Then again, he could just be trying to be friendly… and if that's the case I'm being a jerk…. Ugh, life definitely became more difficult since I moved here, and it hasn't even been two days!"

Her brow is knitted with confusion by the time she reaches her room. That night she tosses and turns with thoughts of what the future will bring…

**OoO**

A couple months pass and Zihao has yet to give up on Xia, though she still denies him every time. They have become closer and their training sessions have become those of fun and laughter, with some order every now and then, of course.

"Zihao, no. Your firewall is still too disoriented, it's a defensive move, remember? Do we need to start over and work on your fire shield?"

"No! No, come on Xia give me a break. I can do this"

"Fine, fine, one more time then"

Zihao sighs and clenches his fists in concentration,

"Okay…"

He breaths slowly in and out, finally he draws out his fire. It takes a while but eventually Zihao perfects the Wall of Fire technique,

"Great! That was perfect Zihao!"

Zihao dissipates his fire and sits on the ground,

Xia walks over to him and bends down so that their faces are almost touching,

"Well, we wouldn't want our prince to not know any defensive moves, now would we? What would we all do if our future ruler was attacked and wasn't aware of how to protect himself?"

Zihao gulps at Xia's proximity, trying to smother a blush.

"So, um, what next?"

"Another control exercise"

"Another one? Seriously?"

"Seriously. Now give me your hands,"

Zihao does so, squeezing Xia's hands for his own personal amusement; to see her squirm, of course,

"G-good. Now close your eyes and breath slowly and evenly"

"All right"

"Start heating up my hands, the second your heat becomes too hot I'll burn yours in return"

Zihao gulps and begins to heat up their hands,

"Is this okay?"

"Yes, but be careful not to lose focus"

Moments pass and Zihao has yet to lose his concentration. So he becomes overly confident and starts to think of other things.

"Ouch! Zihao!"

His eyes snap open to see Xia holding a faintly burnt hand,

"Xia! I'm so sorry!"

Zihao exclaims, tenderly grabbing her wrist to look at the burn, incidentally pulling her closer to him in the process.

"See what happens when you lose control! Damn it, I hope this doesn't scar…"

"I'm so sorry Xia, I-I didn't think…"

Ridden with grief, he crumples into Xia. Resting his forlorn head on Xia's shoulder,

"Zihao? Zihao, come on, I wasn't serious about it scarring…Zihao?"

Xia uses her good hand to lift up Zihao's face so that he'll look her in the eye,

"I'm so sorry Xia…"

Her eyes soften a bit and she rests her and to his cheek lovingly. Zihao responds by grabbing her hand with his own and leaning towards her tender hand. He begins to slowly lean in, watching as Xia allows her eyes to close. Affectionately, his lips close the gap between the two,

"No!"

Xia cries before pushing Zihao away. Giving him a forlorn look, she springs up and runs fro the room,

"Xia! Wait!"

He yells and gets up to run after her. Her head start gives her the advantage though and Xia reaches her room before he can grab her. Closing the door and locking it, Xia slumps down against the door,

"Xia! Xia, open up! Please!"

He pounds against the door but this only results in Xia curling her body up into a ball,

"Xia! Xia? Please, let me talk to you!"

As the pounding continues Xia covers her ears with her hands, trying to block out the sounds,

"Xia! Say something—"

"Go away!"

"Xia…"

"Zihao, please, just go away…"

"Open up Xia, please?"

Dead silence passes between the two and Zihao fears the worst. Finally, he hears the lock on the door un-latching and his face immediately perks up. The door opens slightly and Xia steps out a bit, eyes staring at the ground with great intensity,

"What is it, prince Zihao?"

He winces when he hears the title reattach itself to his name,

"Can I come in?"

Xia hesitates but eventually concedes and grants him access, never looking up from the floor,

"Xia, look at me"

"No, prince Zihao"

"Xia, please…"

Using his index and middle finger Zihao lifts her face up by her chin. Still Xia averts her eyes,

"How's your hand?"

The injured hand in question twitches and Xia's resolve breaks, as she finally looks him in the eyes,

"Why do you look so scared Xia?"

Her eyebrows knit together in inner agony as she attempts to answer his question,

"I-I…we can't do this…prince"

"What do you mean? Xia, come on…"

"No! You shouldn't even be here… Just go back to your room and we'll act as if that never happened"

Zihao's eyes widen and his blood feels as if it's made of ice,

"What? No, Xia that's not what I want. We didn't do anything wrong"

"Yes, we did!"

She yells, taking a large step away from Zihao,

"Why? We were just expressing how we feel! Xia, you can't tell me you don't feel anything for me!"

Once again Xia covers her ears and tears begin to stream down her face,

"So what if I don't deny it? This will never be accepted!"

"We won't know until we try, Xia, please"

He pleads, extending his hand, silently asking Xia to accept him. She wildly shakes her head,

"I'm sorry Zihao, but I can't, I just can't"

"Xia, please…"

He reaches out for her and brings her into an embrace, hiding his terrified face into the hollow of her neck once again,

"Don't do this Xia, I beg you"

"Zihao…"

"It doesn't matter what anyone else will think, I'll make them accept us Xia. I-I love you, so please, don't say no"

Xia's eyes widen tremendously at his words. Trying to stifle her cries, Xia encircles her arms around Zihao's bare chest,

"I won't say no, Zihao...I...love you too"

All the tension in Zihao's body is immediately released and he pulls away to look at Xia,

"Thank the Spirits"

He exclaims before bending down and kissing her once again, although this time with more force; trying to show her everything he's feeling at that moment. Lowering his hands down to her hips, Zihao nips at her bottom lip, requesting entrance that Xia grants almost immediately. During their battle for dominance through their tongues, Xia moves her hands upwards, towards his hair. She is about to pull his headpiece out when it snags on her injured hand,

"Ow!"

She exclaims, puling away from Zihao to examine her hand. Zihao grabs her hand lightly and kisses it gingerly,

"We should get this bandaged, before we continue our…activity"

Xia blushes madly but nods in agreement. Disentangling herself from Zihao, she walks over to a cabinet in which she stores her bandages. Sitting on her bed, Zihao takes the bandages from her hand and begins to wrap up the wound with ease and care.

"Zihao"

"Yes?"

"Are you…are you sure about this?"

"Xia, this isn't the first burn I've ever wrapped up in my life"

"No, that's not what I meant"

He looks up to see her once again looking anywhere that isn't his face,

"Xia, everything will be fine"

"But—"

"No buts, Xia, I promise you everything will be fine"

He strokes the side of her face and her eyes close momentarily. Grabbing his hand she kisses it and whispers,

"You should go, Zihao"

"What? Why? Xia, I swear, you are the most stubborn—"

"I'm not asking you to leave because of that! It is late though, and you need your rest"

"Is that my master taking or my lover?"

"Oh, shut up…"

"So same time tomorrow?"

"No"

"No? Since when do I get a day off?"

He asks, tucking some hair behind her ear affectionately,

"Since tomorrow's a full day festival, remember?"

"Oh right… well then, will you be escorting me Xia?"

"W-what?"

Zihao chuckles deeply and leans in to whisper into her ear,

"Come on, Xia. The festival is a masquerade one, right? No one will know it's us. So first I'll do my princely duties and then I'll rendezvous with you later. Perhaps at the center of the festival?"

"Zihao…you're cruel"

She whispers back, turning her face so that their breaths mingle,

"You love me for it"

He whispers before capturing her lips once more. Pushing Xia down onto the bed, Zihao deepens the kiss by initiating the battle of their tongues. Wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders, Xia buries her hands into the nape of his hair,

"Xia…"

He whispers, moving from her mouth down to her neck, leaving trails of kisses in his wake,

"Zihao…"

Continuing with the tugging oh Zihao's hair, a particularly strong tug causes him to bite down on her neck, almost drawing blood. Xia gasps in shock as he sucks on the spot. His hands start to roam up her body, playing with the hem of her shirt. Zihao attempts to lift her shirt up some, while attacking her lips once more, when Xia grabs his hand,

"Zihao, stop"

"Why, Xia?"

He asks and returns to her neck while trying to free his hand from hers. Xia, however, begins to pull away,

"Xia?"

"Zihao, you should leave, it's late"

Looking into her eyes for several moments, Zihao finally nods in consent and get off of the bed. Xia gets up along with him to walk him to the door,

"Goodnight, Zihao"

"Goodnight, Xia, I'll see you tomorrow at the festival"

And with that he kisses her lightly and leaves.

**OoO**

Walking towards his room, Zihao is halted by the sight of his younger sister leaning agaist his door,

"What do you want, Yüzhen?"

"What? I can't come by to say hi to my oldest brother?"

Zihao looks around suspiciously,

"Where's Yaozu?"

"Not here, obviously, probably reading a book in the royal Library or something"

"Do you mind moving? It's late, and I want to get some sleep before tomorrow's festival"

"Oh, good, you remembered. Father was worried you had forgotten"

"Well I didn't, Xia reminded me"

He answers while pushing past her to gain entry to his room. Yüzhen follows,

"Ah, yes, how is our little commoner doing? Well, I hope, have you surpassed her yet?"

"She's just fine, not that you care, and no, I haven't surpassed her yet. She's quite the prodigy"

"More like quite the liar…"

"What?"

"Oh, come on Zihao, touched by the Sun Spirit himself? It's a bit too much to chew"

"Well, it's the truth, so shut it"

"Whatever, what are you going to do at the festival tomorrow?"

Zihao narrows his eyes at his sister, suspecting she knows a lot more then she's telling by how she's asking him these types of questions,

"Why do you care?"

"I was just curious, brother. No need to get snippy…unless, that is, you were going to do something you know you shouldn't"

"Don't be so melodramatic, Yüzhen. If you really want to know, after the opening ceremony I'll be partaking in the events"

"Hmm, you've never done that before"

"Yes, well, I want to see if this festival is really any fun"

"Right…well, Yaozu and I will probably stay in. Though he has been bugging me about seeing that circus freak act"

Zihao chuckles, though not letting his guard down, knowing not to give her any reason to suspect him of hiding a secret,

"Well, Yaozu usually gets his way so I'm sure you'll be watching the 'circus freaks' after all"

"Whatever, well I should probably go get him…as you said before, it really is late"

She says and then makes her way from the room,

"Good night, Zihao"

"Night, Yüzhen"

**OoO**

The next morning, Xia wakes up at a leisurely pace, though still awaked by dawn. Sitting up in her bed, a blush creeps up onto her face. Xia touches her lips and whispers,

"Did that really happen last night?"

But before she really has time to process anything, a maid enters with her daily breakfast,

"Good morning Master Xia"

"Morning, Ah Cy"

As with Jaw-Long, Xia convinced Ah Cy to trade names with her.

"Will you be needing anything else this morning, miss?"

"No, thank you"

Ah Cy bows and takes her leave. Xia stares at her food for a minute, before moving it away from herself. Due to her training sessions with Zihao, along with the inner confusion inside her as well as being homesick, Xia hasn't eaten a full meal since the first day she spent at the palace. She doesn't know why, but whenever she looks at food anymore she's just not that hungry. That's not to say she's starving herself, she'll eat a roll of bread or some fruit every now and then to keep her energy up; just not full fledged meals.

Picking up a bowl of fruit from the stand of breakfast, Xia walks over to her closet to pick an outfit for today's festival. Looking through a lot of unknown robes to her, thanks to the maids hired by Fire Lady Wen, Xia pulls out the first dress to catch her eye.

"This one should be okay for the festival"

It was a long dress robe meant for occasions such as these, but not too elaborate that she'll stick out as someone who lives at the palace. Going with the traditional red, the sleeves are transparent silk with a pinkish hue.

Placing the dress on her bed, Xia moves into her bathroom to draw her self a bath. Heating the water up with some warm fire bending, she enters the tub and relaxes in its warmth.

**OoO**

Zihao looks around his room with a bored expression adorning his face. His chamber servants are gathering his clothing for the upcoming ceremony with him sitting in a chair having his hair made up for him.

"I can't wait for all this to be over so I can meet up with Xia"

This thought is the only thing keeping Zihao from losing his temper and accidentally infuriating his father in the process.

"How much longer will this take?

"Please be patient, prince Zihao. We are almost finished preparing you"

"Fine…"

A knock on the door draws the attention of one of the maids. She opens it and bows to the person who is on the other side,

"Can I help you, prince Yaozu?"

"I need to speak with my brother"

"Of course, prince Yaozu"

"Yaozu, what do you need?"

Zihao is taken by surprise when his younger brother walks into his room, first Yüzhen now Yaozu? His siblings never visit him like this.

"I was wondering if you knew what was going on with Yüzhen. She's been acting strange since last night; more diabolical than usual"

"Really? That's strange, even for her…but no, I don't know what's gotten into her"

"Hmm, all right. Hey, will you be finished soon? Father's ready to get this over with"

"I think so, though it's not really in my control on how long it takes for them to finish me up"

"Oh, how right you are. Well, see you later, I'm going to make sure Yüzhen and I still match… why mother feels the need to continue showing us of as twins, everyone in the Nation knows it by now"

"You two are her babies, deal with it"

Yaozu gives Zihao a dirty look, and then stalks out of the room.

"Prince Zihao. You are ready"

"Finally!"

Zihao gasps out, exiting the room without a second thought.

**OoO**

The festival has just started and Xia finds herself barely outside of the palace. Villagers all around were bustling with last minute touch ups to their stands, whether they are food stands or game stalls, they were everywhere. Walking towards a stand meant for selling masks to those who either don't have one or want a new one, Xia buys a mask that'll hide the top half of her face.

"Here you go, miss"

"Thank you"

Xia replies and then walks off, intending to look around at the other stands.

**OoO**

Tingzhe sighs as he waits for the rest of his family to gather in the room that leads to the ceremonial balcony,

"Wen, when will you be ready?"

"Oh, hush dear, I just need to add some touch ups"

"Very well…"

Eventually Tingzhe and Wen's three children enter the room,

"Hello mother, father"

Zihao greets for the three of them,

"Oh, Zihao, you look so refined! And Yaozu, Yüzhen, so darling!"

Their mother compliments, hugging all of them. Yaozu's grimace going unnoticed,

"Are we all ready then?"

The Fire Lord asks impatiently,

"Yes dear, we're all ready"

"Good"

Da enters the room on his Lord's command,

"My Lord's and Lady's, please line up accordingly… princess Yüzhen and prince Yaozu in the front, side by side…right, then prince Zihao, good. Finally Fire Lady Wen and Fire Lord Tingzhe…next to eat other please, thank you. Alright, I'll aware the announcer that you are all ready"

Da leaves and Tingzhe whispers to his wife,

"Why do we do his again?"

"To show your subjects that you care, dear"

"Right, right"

Zihao listens in on his parent's conversation and can't help but think,

"_I wonder if Xia and I will be like that one day… I hope so…_"

A genuine smile creeps onto his face and suddenly he can't wait to capture Xia into a loving embrace. He is drawn out of his thoughts when the announcements commence,

"CITIZEN OF CALDERA! IT IS TIME TO MEET THE ROYAL FAMILY! PRINCE YAOZU AND PRINCESS YÜZHEN!"

Da motions for the two to walk out, the crowd cheers slightly,

"CROWNED PRINCE ZIHAO!"

Zihao walks forward, the cheers increase. He looks over the balcony looking for any sign of Xia. Of course he finds none and he begins the ceremonial plastered smile and the gracious wave,

"LAST, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, FIRE LADY WEN AND FIRE LORD TINGZHE!"

The crowd erupts in cheers and applause, Tingzhe waves courteously along with Wen, after ten or so minutes the Royal family is allowed to leave the balcony to return to whatever it is they wish to do,

"Mother, father, we're off. See you tomorrow"

Yüzhen tells her parents, linking her arm with Yaozu,

"Be safe, my darlings!"

Wen sends them off and turns to Zihao,

"Will you be joining in the festivities too, Zihao?"

"Yes, mother, I'll be going now"

"Have a nice time"

She smiles at him and he walks out of the room. Stopping at his room to change first,

"_Can't be conspicuous, now can I?"_

**OoO**

Xia finds herself in the middle of the festivities, waiting for Zihao to find her. Making sure her mask is firmly in place; she looks in the direction Zihao should be arriving from. Suddenly, someone grabs her waist from behind,

"Gotchya!"

"Zihao! You scared me! I thought you'd be coming from the other direction!"

"Well I thought I'd surprise you"

He chuckles, turning Xia around in his arms; never relinquishing his hold on her. Xia's mouth drops from the sight of him,

"Why are you staring?"

"I-I've just never seen you like this"

"Like what?"

Instead of answering, Xia simply tugs on his freed locks and runs a hand down his casual robes,

"My appearance? Do…do you like it?"

Xia smiles and nods, reaching up on her tip toes to kiss him lightly,

"You look very handsome"

Zihao chuckles,

"Are you saying I don't normally look handsome?"

"Of course you do, but in a princely way. When you look like this…well, you look more like a ruggedly handsome sort of type"

"Oh really?"

"Really"

Zihao smirks and pulls Xia in tighter, fully intending to kiss her. Lips locking, Xia wraps her arms around Zihao's neck, his arms encircling her waist. Opening his own mouth, Zihao licks her bottom lip, silently asking for entrance. Pulling away slightly, Xia shakes her head while smiling coyly,

"I don't want us to become a main attraction, Zihao"

"Xia, no one knows who we are here"

"That doesn't mean I'll condone people staring at us kissing in public"

"Fine, fine"

Letting go of her waist, Zihao intertwines their hands. Bending down to kiss her lightly just once more,

"Zihao, you're ridiculous"

He laughs,

"You love it"

Xia smiles and brings her other arm up to grab onto Zihao's arm that is holding her hand. Looking down to her, Zihao smiles tenderly,

"So where do you want to go first?"

"Can we go to watch the circus?"

"Of course"

**OoO**

"That was amazing, Zihao! Did you see that Bear? I've never seen a creature like it!"  
"I'm glad you liked it Xia, yeah, seriously though, a 'Bear'? Like, what is that!"

They both laugh with no restraint,

"Thank you for bringing me to this, Zihao"

"Yes, I believe I chose the right girl to join me tonight"

"Oh, Zihao, you're terrible"

"Hmm, and you love it, Xia"

"True…"

Zihao brings his arm over her shoulders and pulls her close,

"You know, I'm sure my parents would be fine with our joining…"

Xia's eyes fall to the ground,

"Please Zihao, don't ruin it"

Zihao lightly kisses the top of her head,

"Of course, I won't mention it again tonight…for tonight we are but a man and a woman in love, am I correct?"

Xia looks up, a blush on her cheeks,

"You are correct, Zihao, I love you"

"I love you too, Xia"

They kiss chastely and begin to walk in another direction of the festival. Neither noticing a pair of amber eyes watching them in antagonism.

OoO

Night has captured the sky for some time now and the festival is almost finished. Zihao and Xia visited several shop stands and even played several games with one another, all the while hiding beneath the protection of their masks. Just as the festival is dying down Zihao brings Xia to a more secluded place,

"Don't you just love the stars? They're so mysterious"

He begins, sitting down on the grassy earth, motioning for Xia to sit beside him. She does so while answering,

"I heard someone once say that stars are great balls of fire…mini suns, if you'll believe it. That idea makes me feel so small in comparison."

"Balls of fire? Like fire benders in the sky?"

"Hmm, I never thought about it like that, but I suppose that'd be a pretty accurate description"

"Nights like these make me feel alive, you know? Like I'm connected to something bigger than myself. How about you? You must feel connected"

"Not really"

"What? Why? I'd think you'd feel extremely linked since, well, you know"

"Since I was touched by the Sun Spirit? Hmm, no, I don't see it that way…actually I feel disconnected from everything, as if I'm not supposed to be here"

"Of course you're supposed to be here"

Xia laughs lightly,

"What makes you think that?"

Zihao leans in slowly, whispering as he does so,

"Because, if anything you're meant to be here with me"

Xia gasps at his boldness and leans into him in reciprocation,

"Zihao…"

"…Xia"

Their lips collide. Zihao gently lays Xia down onto the earth, positioning himself on top of her so that he doesn't crush her. Tongues crashing, Zihao deepens the kiss as his hands bury themselves into her hair. Xia's hands roaming up and down his chest. Eventually breaking for air, Xia begins to suck on Zihao's neck, nipping and biting every now and then.

"Xia…"

He grinds out, loving the way she makes him feel. Falling back onto his back, Zihao turns his head sideways to look at Xia, her light blush making him smile at her,

"Zihao…"

"Yes?"

Silence follows until Xia shakes her head, turning over to curl into his side,

"No, it's nothing"

Zihao is confused but doesn't press the issue; he simply marvels at how perfectly he fits at her side,

"This is how we should always be…together"

An hour, perhaps two, passes before either of them decides to move. It is Xia that moves first, sitting up to look at Zihao,

"We should probably get back to the palace…the Fire Lady must be getting worried"

Zihao snorts,

"Nah, she's probably thinking of future outfits for the twins"

"That's sweet"

"Yeah? Tell them that"

Xia giggles sweetly and Zihao kisses her lightly,

"Did I tell you how beautiful you look tonight?"

"No"

"Good, because you look radiant"

Xia's blush deepens ten fold and she stands up due to embarrassment,

"Let's go Zihao, it really is late"

"Yes, mother"

Xia hits his arm lightly, silently chastising him for ridiculing her. The two walk back, arm in arm, until they reach the palace doors and Xia pulls away,

"Xia…"

She merely smiles lovingly at him and pulls off her mask,

"Zihao don't, the fantasy of the festival couldn't last forever, now could it?"

"I can make it last forever…"

He whispers so that only she can hear. Staring at him with sad eyes, her smile falters a bit,

"Good night, Zihao"

"Good night, Xia"

She turns away from him, intending on heading towards her room when she feels a tug on her arm and before she knows it, she is brought back into Zihao's embrace. Zihao placing a quick, loving, kiss on her lips before letting her go,

"I love you Xia, good night"

He turns away, but not before he hears her whisper back to him,

"I love you too, Zihao"

**A/N: Hello all! Sorry for the delay! I had a bit of writers block so then I wanted to make it up to you all by writing a nice, long, chapter and before I knew it, it felt as if I was writing a novel! Well, anyway I hope you liked it and please…REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!…That is all, thank you… haha also, Yaozu= honoring the ancestors, ****Yüzhen= Jade Gem, Ah Cy= lovely. Now I believe that is all, so I bid you a farewell until next time…and please REVIEW!**

**Love,**

**Pastry**


	6. Time to Play

**Chapter Five: Time to Play**

Xia didn't receive a wink of sleep that night. Her mind continued to plague her about the past moments with Zihao. Bringing her finer tips to her lips for the umpteenth time that night, she once more pondered if what had transpired against them truly happened, or if it was all a dream. Shaking her head of such thoughts, she drags herself out of bed and begins to watch the sun rise. Beginning her morning stretches, Xia mentally prepares herself for the day.

**OoO**

Prince Zihao jumps out of his bed the moment he awakens, excited to see Xia again. Last night was wonderful, and he hoped that the two of them would be able to become public soon. He waits for his breakfast and mulls over this. How shall he go about ensuring Xia to be at his side in the public eye? Of course he'll have to aware his father of his feelings, but how to do that? Perhaps he should tell his mother of his feelings first. Yes, that would be wise. Cracking his back, he smiles brightly as his food is placed in front of him. Today will be a good day.

**OoO**

Princess Yüzhen smirks as she walks down the hall leading to her older brothers room, her mind conjuring diabolical ideas. She recently acquired some interesting information about him and the little commoner Xia. Turning the corner, she almost bumps into her twin Yaozu.

"Yüzhen! What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question, brother."

"Perhaps you could, however it'd be foolish of you, seeing as how we're two feet away from the royal library and everyone knows that's where I spend most of my time."

"Ah, so you're right, I must've gotten turned around then."

"Sure you did, in your own home?"

"It happens to the best of us, you know. I mean, we live in a palace, it's not always the easiest place to navigate."

"Well then, let me navigate it for you, sister. Where is it you wish to go?"

Yüzhen stares at her twin. He's smiling at her, though she knows better than to be deceived by such a thing. She never ventures to anyone's room unless she's scheming something, and she doesn't want to let him in on her fun. Oh yes, she knows that her parents would probably happily consent to Zihao's relationship with Xia. After all, she's an amazing bender and seems to be able to hold Zihao's playboy attention. Still, Zihao and Xia may not know that yet, so she thought she could play with the two of them a little bit.

However, Yaozu's appearance has put Yüzhen in a bit of a pickle. Recalculating, she decided to leave Zihao alone for now, resetting her sights on Xia now.

"That's very kind of you Yaozu. Could you please direct me towards the arena? I was planning on training today."

Yaozu looks at her suspiciously, but holds his tongue. Instead he holds out his arm—to which she links her arm through—and plays along with his sister's phony forgetfulness.

**OoO**

Practicing some breathing exercises, Xia is sitting on the arena floor waiting for Zihao to appear for his lesson. A knock on the door startles her awake. Turning around, expecting to see her new lover, she is surprised to find Princess Yüzhen standing at the entrance. Standing immediately, Xia bows towards the royal.

"Princess Yüzhen! What a surprise, is there something I can help you with?"

"Oh, no not really. I just wanted to ask you a couple questions, if that's all right?"

Xia's posture straightens, even though the girl's words seem harmless, her tone suggests otherwise.

"Of course that's all right, princess."

"Good! Well, I was just wondering what is was that you teach my brother?"

"I am helping him perfect his fire bending, princess. That means I'm advancing his techniques so that he may be a master."

"He's not already a master?"

"Well, yes, he is in the basic sense, but I'm helping him become an even better master."

"Oh, I see, well then I just have one more question for you Master Xia."

"What is it, princess?"

"How long have you and my brother been seeing each other?"

Xia's eyes widen at Yüzhen's question. So many thoughts run through her mind. Her breathing becomes shallow at the thought of what may happen. Yüzhen's smirk widens devilishly, her fun is just about to begin.

**A/N: I don't know how long this will be on FF but I'm just glad that I'm finally updating with this story. Well I hope that my past viewers will return and that new ones will appear. **


	7. Torn

**Chapter Six: Torn**

Xia can feel her heart beating painfully in her chest. How did she find out? What will Yüzhen do now that she knows? Will I have to leave? Many more thoughts run through Xia's mind and soon it becomes too much. Suddenly she feels light headed, her vision going dark. All the pressure crashes down on Xia. Combined with her body's lack of nutrition as of late causes her to pass out onto the floor.

Yüzhen's cocky smirk falters. Well, she certainly hadn't been suspecting that. At most, she thought the bender would begin to cry or something like that so she could have fun by watching. Now that Xia's passed out, how is she supposed to have any fun at her expense? Sighing, Yüzhen started towards the fallen girl when she is stopped by the sound of steps behind her. She's roughly pushed out of the way by her eldest brother, Zihao.

Zihao had been once again running late, but had inkling that Xia would let it go, especially after last night. The thought of the festival had brought a blissful smile upon the crowned prince's face. However, that smile was wiped off as he walked into the training arena and saw his sister Yüzhen in the room with Xia lying on the ground. Quickly running over to his fallen love, bumping into his sister in the process. He kneels next to her and hurriedly scoops her up in his arms. Swiftly walking back out into the hallway, Zihao heads towards Xia's room, planning to rest her on the bed and finding a healer.

Before leaving her room, he hears Xia grunt with consciousness. Turning on his heal, Zihao makes his way back to her side, immediately taking her hand in the process. Her other hand moves up to rub her eyes, clearing her vision. She looks over to Zihao and notices how worried he looks. Her face contorts in pain as the memories of what just happened with the princess enter her mind. Zihao helps her sit up.

"Are you okay, Xia? What happened?"

Bringing her knees into her chest, Xia looks away from him.

"I'm fine. I just got a little light headed."

"Are you sure? Are you eating alright?"

"Zihao, we've got a problem."

"What is it?"

He asks, stroking his fingers tenderly over her forearm.

"You're sister know. About us, I mean."

Zihao's arm stops in its movements, his eyes widening in shock.

"How'd she find out?"

"I don't know."

He can see the fear in her eyes, and takes her face in his hands and kisses her deeply. Trying to show her his love and devotion. This doesn't have the affect on Xia he had wanted it too. Instead, Xia shoves him away, curling up into a ball.

"This changes everything, Zihao."

"No, it doesn't. Listen Xia, I'll speak with my father. I want to be with you."

"It does change everything, Zihao! You think your father will allow you to be with a peasant? He won't allow it."

"You're not just a peasant! You're a great fire bender and you've been touched by the sun spirit!"

"All these factors will mean nothing! Zihao, please just go."

"What? No, Xia—"

"Leave, Zihao."

She picks her head up to look at him now, desperation in her eyes. Zihao steels his nerves and once again tries to show her that he won't be leaving. Their argument continues on for several hours. Both of their tempers rising with each passing moment the argument continues. Quickly bringing the tearful bender into his embrace. Xia squirms, feeling uncomfortable in her own skin, just wanting to be left alone. Pushing Zihao away, Xia falls to the ground, over come with tears.

"Please Zihao, just go away!"

Zihao feels his heart breaking as he watches his love bawl on the ground. Feeling as if he has perhaps pushed her too far, he slowly exits her room. Closing the door on his way out.

"I love you, Xia."

He whispers just before he loses the door completely.

Xia remains still for several more minutes. She can't help but feel terrible for kicking Zihao out, but she couldn't bear to be with him any longer due to the possibility of being taken away from him at any minute. Who knows if Yüzhen's already told someone about them? Fear taking over her mind completely, Xia packs her bag and fills it with the clothes she originally brought to the palace. Her head fogging up again, she shakes it off and rapidly leaves her room. The only thing going through her mind is her home with her mother and father. Chocking back a sob, she thinks,

"_I'm sorry, Zihao, but this way's easier than me staying here and getting torn apart by your father." _

**A/N: Hey, so it's a little short. Thanks FLZ for your review/support. I appreciate it. I can only hope for more reviews but I'm really just hurrying to finish the story at this point since it doesn't seem all too popular at the moment. It'll probably get to 10 chapters or so, but yeah, this chapter my heart just wasn't in it too much so it's not too detailed or anything, bust still, hope you enjoy.**


	8. The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Xia hadn't made it too far from the palace before Zihao realized she had left. Barely an hour had passed from his departure before the young prince had returned to check on his beloved fire bending master. However, when he saw that she was not present in her room, he immediately knew something was amiss. Thinking quickly, Zihao ran out of the room and headed towards a short cut he knew to the closest exit in the palace. His heart yearned painfully for Xia, hoping that she wasn't too away from the palace already. Making his way outside, he bounded for the only exit out of the city, praying to the sun spirit Ri that she was on foot.

It seemed he was in luck, with the help of a borrowed (stolen) komodo rhino, the prince caught up to the young firebender within the next hour, before she had even made it halfway to the Capitol's entrance. "Xia!" Zihao yells out. Xia, startled by the utterance of her name, stops dead in her tracks and slowly turned around to face her pursuer. "Zihao," she mumbles, her head titled downward, ashamed that he found her, "You shouldn't have—" What he shouldn't have done, Zihao never found out because before she could finish the prince had pulled Xia into his embrace and kissed her hard on the mouth.

Breaking away after a moment, Zihao touched her forehead with his and whispered in a weary voice, "Don't ever scare me like that again, Xia. I though I had lost you," his arms tightened around her, "and I was so scared. It's okay, everything will be okay, believe me. Please, love, come back to the palace with me and we'll figure this out. When we return to the palace, straight away I will go to my father." At this moment Xia began to struggle due to her fears, but he wouldn't release her, "Yes, I will go to my father and I ask for his permission for us to be wed. I won't have anyone other than you, Xia. Don't you get it? I love you. We'll get through this together."

The prince finally relinquished his hold on her, partially at least, he still had her shoulders in his grasp. Looking down at her, Zihao tried to convey all is emotion to her with just a look. It seemed to have worked, because Xia soon relaxed and walked towards him, bringing the prince into an embrace of her own. Silently, the two headed back to the palace, bracing themselves for what would come with their return.

**OoO**

Xia paced nervously outside of the throne room. Zihao had gone in there half an hour ago and she still hadn't heard anything from the inside, good or bad. She prayed to anyone that would listen that the Fire Lord would accept her as a daughter in law, if he didn't then she would probably be banished from the Fire Nation for even mentioning the idea of marrying the crowned prince. Rubbing her temples methodically, she tried to calm her shot nerves but she knew she wouldn't be calm until an answer was given.

After another half hour of waiting, Zihao finally made his way out of the throne room. As soon as the curtain behind him fell shut, his face broke out into the largest smile Xia had ever seen on his handsome face. Zihao quickly picked her up and swung her around, shouting at the top of his lungs in sheer joy. "He said yes! Xia, my father said yes! He accepts us! We can get married whenever we want!" At first Xia was shocked by the news, when Zihao finally placed her down on the ground again, Xia's face broke out into a smile as well. That smile showed everything she was feeling in that moment: happiness, excitement, exhilaration, relief, and much, much more. Wasting no time, the young fire bender reached up and planted a kiss on her now official lover. He laughed into her kiss and wrapped his arms around her waste again, lifting her up and spinning her once more before deepening the kiss.

The two were interrupted by a cough from some nobleman in the hallway, though which one coughed the two didn't know, and they didn't care. Finally they could be together without being judged, and soon they could be married. Never in a million years did Xia believe she could be so lucky, and for the first time in her life, the young bender was thankful that the sun spirit had saved her life that day, way back when.

**A/N: Hey! Sorry for the long awaited update. Hopefully I'll actually keep my promise to you guys and finish this story before the summer is out. I'm really trying to write more, for practice, you know? Anyway, I don't even know if my previous readers will still be interested in this story, but either way I'll keep updating and hope that my old reader come back and perhaps I'll pick up some more along the way. So, please and enjoy, and please REVIEW! **


	9. Wedding Bells

The day had finally arrived. After months of preparation, the wedding the entire Fire Nation anticipated had arrived. The people, noble and common alike, had been ecstatic upon hearing their beloved crowned prince Zihao was engaged to be married. Although the daughters of the noble men had envied his fiance Xia with such a passion it rivaled the sun, no one dared vocalize their outrage about Xia's status, not when the Fire Lord himself had given his blessing to the two young benders.

Xia was so excited. Tingzhe had invited her mother and father, Cheung and Ling, to the Fire Nation Capital so they could be present for their only child's wedding. So with the help of her mother, along with Fire Lady Wen, and the support of her father, Xia was beyond prepared for the day she and Zihao would become one. The two lovers hadn't seen much of each other ever since they became public, however. There were many tasks each of the pair had to complete before the ceremony, but with the right amount of planning and a staff of one hundred plus.

It had taken forever, but the day was finally here, and although both were excited with their impending union, Zihao's nerves were starting to get the better of him. "Ah, Yaozu! I can't believe I'm doing this! It's insane, right? Tell me what I'm doing is insane." The younger of the two looked over to his elder and shrugged, "People have been getting married for, well forever, brother. It's not insane. However, what mother calls a ceremony...well, that's a different argument. You and Xia probably could've been married and on honeymoon by now, but no. She had to draw things out for her precious baby. Honestly, this won't be a ceremony, it'll be like one of those plays on Ember Island. Such foolishness, if you ask me."

"Yeah. That's what is insane! _That's_ why I'm freaking out, the ceremony...just the ceremony." Zihao muttered to himself, pacing up and down his bedroom, waiting for one of the sages to call on him and begin the ceremony. His father had wandered off somewhere claiming to be searching for something to eat, but Zihao knew he just wanted to go into his own room and sleep until he was actually needed. So Zihao was left alone with only his brother to keep him company, and by keep him company, it really means harass. "Oh, no, you have cold feet, but that's natural too. Or, so I've read." Yaozu says, pouring himself a drink from a tray the servants left with the princes earlier that morning.

The elder prince gave his brother a glowering look before stopping his pace and staring at himself in a full length mirror. "I look ridiculous." He mumbles, giving himself one last look over. His hair was pulled up in its usual fashion; a tight bun high on his head held up by the headpiece that signifies his status. He was wearing traditional noble robes that were a foot thick and made him feel claustrophobic as well as hot, and not the good type of hot. He felt like if he made a wrong move he would poke someone's eye out with one of the points from his ensemble. Zihao could only hope Xia wasn't stressing out as much as he was.

Xia felt like she was going to hurl. She wasn't having cold feet, per say. She was more nervous that she would make a mistake during the ceremony and embarrass herself, then the Fire Lord would rethink their union and call of the wedding all due to her ineptness. Although her mother had tried to calm her daughter down and have her eat something, but Xia refused to even look at the food. After a while her mother left the room for a breath of fresh air, and the Fire Lady went with her for company. This left the soon to be bride with her soon to be sister in law, Yüzhen. The two sat in the room in silence for what seemed like forever, though in reality it was only just over an hour.

While Xia twiddled with her thumbs, Yüzhen, meanwhile, had a small mirror in hand and was fussing over her hair. "I look like an imp with my hair this way. Honestly, what was that servant _thinking_?" She exclaimed, frowning at her reflection. "I mean, I get that they want have the bride stand out beauty wise, but making everyone else look hideous? Ugh, how annoying." The young princess looks up at Xia and frowns, "Not that I mean to say that you're ugly and that they're trying to make us look worse so you look better, because you're not. Ugly, that is."

"Er, thanks?" Xia answers awkwardly. "Look, Zihao said that I have to be nice to you so I'm trying. _Really_. It's just not my strong suit, okay?" This time Xia simply nods before looking back into her vanity, thumbs twiddling away. Yüzhen lets out a large sigh before walking towards her soon to be sister in law. "I'm sorry, by the way." This apology caused Xia's head to snap up and look at the princess, "What for?"

"For, well, you know. For terrorizing you when you and Zihao started dating. I knew you felt insecure about it and I—"

"—Yüzhen, it's fine. I know you didn't mean any harm...er, well any _real_ harm." The princess nods, thankful the prodigy didn't for her to continue on with an awkward apology. She hates apologies, it makes everything gawky and is almost always unnecessary. After everything had been said between the two, they slid back into their silence, though this time there was less tension in the air. After some time Fire Lady Wen and Ling walked back into the room accompanied by a flank of female attendants and a Fire Sage.

"Xia, my dear," the Fire Lady begins, smiling at the young girl, "Are you ready to join our family?" Xia takes a moment to glance over at her mother, who is smiling so widely and has already begun to tear up, before looking back at the Fire Lady. Relaxing her shoulders and letting out a small sigh, Xia smiles at the woman, "I am, I really, really am."

**A/N: Haha, success! A second chapter in less than a week! I'm proud. Well, let me know what you think.**

**Pastry~**


	10. Stomach Flu

It had been two years since the union between crowned prince Zihao and the commoner-turned princess Xia. The nation was in a state of peace, as were its people, with the exception of one nerve ridden noble. Xia had decided earlier that day to take a walk in the royal gardens in hopes of calming herself down. Sadly, the tranquility n the garden had done nothing for her.

After having walked for an hour aimlessly, the princess sat down on a stone bench overlooking a decent sized pond. It was here she stayed for several more hours, mindlessly rubbing her hand over her recently upset stomach. For the past week Xia had been bed ridden with a stomach flu, hardly being able to move unless it was to throw up into a basin beside the bed. Zihao had been troubled with the news, worried about his wife's well being. Eventually being cooped up in the palace became too much for the bending master and today, while feeling up to it, she snuck out of the palace for fresh air.

Hearing a small rustle behind her, followed by a relived sigh, Xia turned around and smiled at her husband.

"Xia, what are you doing out here? You're sick, you need bed rest. What if something happened while you were out here? No one knew you were here. It could've been disastrous."

"Oh, Zihao, you worry too much. I'm fine, really I am. Besides the stomach issues, I haven't shown any real symptoms of the flu. The healers don't know what they're talking about."

She scoffed at the thought of the ancient healers with their delayed reactions and mumbled voices, they were utterly incompetent in her opinion. Zihao placed a hand on the back of her neck, twirling the hairs at its base in his fingers.

"Even so, I was worried."

Xia looked at him now, she hadn't been thinking of him when she snuck off honestly, and now she was sorry for it.

"I'm sorry, Zihao, I just needed to get out."

"I understand, but next time tell me, okay?"

He bent his head down and leaned it against her shoulder.

"Would you have let me out of the room?"

"No."

They both laughed lightly at this. Xia brought her hand up and began to rub slow circles into his back. Letting out an audible sigh, Xia prepared herself for what she was about tell him.

"Zihao, I've been thinking. My symptoms...they don't scream stomach flu, do they? I mean, there's the morning...obscenities, but the rest...I mean, I don't have a fever, and sure I get a little woozy sometimes but that's not exclusive to—to the flu, and—"

"Xia, what are you saying?"

"Well, Zihao...I—I think I may be...pregnant."

Xia held her breath. It wasn't that she was worried Zihao wouldn't be happy about the news. That wasn't it at all. What Xia was worried about was the possibility that she may not be pregnant, she wasn't a healer and this was just a feeling. The thought of getting Zihao's hopes up only to have them sent crashing down if she turned out to not be pregnant made whatever was in her stomach churn with nerves.

Zihao's head shot up the moment she said the word pregnant. After searching her eyes for a fraction of a second and then shot down to look at her stomach. Straightening his back, keeping his gaze constant, he lets out a shaky breath, trying not to get too excited about the possibility of his wife's pregnancy for the same reasons as she. The two of them hadn't attempted to get regnant, not really at least, they hadn't thought about the possibility.

"Let's get you back inside then and find out."

Xia quickly nodded her head, took Zihao's outstretched hand and the two of them made their way back to the palace in hopes of good news.

:Seven Months Later:

The crowned prince of the Fire Nation stared down at the little bundle in his arms. Zihao had been making small cooing noises at his son for the past ten or so minutes now. Hearing a sigh coming from the floor, Zihao took a seat next to the mat in which his wife is currently laying on. Shifting the newborn so that he can spare one hand to stroke through Xia's hair, he whispers gently,

"I'm so proud of you."

Xia laughs lightly, her eyes still blinking with exhaustion.

"How is he?"

"Magnificent. Only a few hours old and I can tell he's going to be a powerful bender just like his father, maybe even as powerful as his mother. He's only cried twice since you fell asleep, and both times I knew exactly what he wanted. Indeed, the first time he cried I started bouncing lightly and he settled right down, and the second time...well the second time I could smell what was wrong."

The new mother laughed at her husband, glad that he knew how to handle their son already. Sitting up, Xia reached out her arms and Zihao supplied her with the babe. Looking down at him with a smile, Xia memorized his face in her mind. His bright amber eyes looking u at her with faint amusement.

"What should we name him?"

"Oh, yeah. I was thinking of names while you were sleeping. What do you think about Peizhi?"

Xia smiles brightly at Zihao.

"It's a good name for a prince of the Fire Nation."

"Yeah, it is."

**A/N: Well here you go, one chapter down, two to go. I might've said that last time, but I really mean it this time. Anyway, Peizhi means respectful, or at least that's what the internet says. Also, I know pregnancy terms go for nine months, but I specifically put in a seven month gap because symptoms such as morning symptoms usually don't show up the first week of your pregnancy but more like the first or second month. In this case, Xia was two months preggers. Tell me what you think about the chapter or the series or whatever is on your mind. **

**-Pastry~**


	11. A Debt is Due

Xia and Peizhi, almost a year old now, waited for Zihao outside of the war room while he, his father, and the generals discussed matters concerning the state. Re-situating the babe on her lap, the princess huffed out in annoyance. The meeting was running an hour late and Xia tired of waiting patiently. How much could they talk about in there anyway? It's not like there was anything really devastating going on at the moment.

Glancing to her left, Xia could see that the sun was high in the sky, meaning half the day had already passed. Peizhi then began to fuss in her arms, as he usually did when he was held still for more than ten minutes. Smiling down at her son, the fire bender picked him up his arms so his feet were touching her sitting legs and began to bounce him lightly up and down. The young prince began to laugh at the action and smiled to his mother with his large, chunky cheeks. Kissing his forehead, Xia spoke,

"I know how you feel my little one, I don't like sitting still either."

Looking at the door and sighing, the princess stands and walks over to the nearest balcony to look out over the outdoors. She winced slightly when Peizhi grabbed a fist full of her hair and pulled. "Quite the grip you have, little one. Perhaps Zihao was right when he said you'd be a powerful bender."

She laughed to herself, nuzzling the baby's forehead with her own, causing him to laugh once more with glee. While her head was turned down, away from the sky, Xia noticed a shadow pass over her. Confused, she looked up, wondering if a cloud passed over he sky. Instead of seeing a cloud, what she saw made no sense to her. Her eyes stinging, Xia diverted her eyes and turned her son's body so that he was looking over her shoulder in case he tried to look up. The princess tried to comprehend what she just briefly saw in the sky. The sun was blocked out completely, instead a giant dark circle was in it's stead, but that was just as unsafe to look at as the sin itself.

"Xia!"

Looking up, Xia saw her husband running towards her, his face portraying confusion and fear.

"Xia, we can't bend! No one can, we don't know what's going on. All of a sudden father's fire in the war room just stopped!"

Holding her child in one hand, Xia tests this out for herself. She tried to summon a simple fire dagger in her hand but with no result. Looking back to her husband, she doesn't know what to say. Instead of speaking, Zihao takes his wife's hand and begins to pull her down the hallway towards their bedroom, not liking how vulnerable he feels out in the open with his family and no bending to protect them.

As they walked down the hallway in the strange not-sunlight-light, a strange feeling overcomes Xia. Her head begins to pound and suddenly a voice sounds from the back of her head,

_It is time to pay up, child._

Xia, confused by the voice, looks over her shoulder and sees that no one is there. Looking back towards Zihao, she wonders why he hasn't stopped to look for the voice either, he had to have heard it, hadn't he? Or had she just imagined the voice? Looking over her shoulder once more, maybe, Xia though, she didn't want to know if she had.

**A/N: Second to last chapter! WHAT? Haha, anyway, thanks to Angry Nazar for the review. Anyway, I know this was a little short, but not by that much. Either way, let me know what you think.**

**Pastry~**


	12. The Darkest Day

It had been a full week since the darkness overcame the Fire Nation and it's people were beginning to panic. There was no fire bending going on and no sign of this darkness ever ending. The royal family was especially worried. Fire Lord Tingzhe's nerves about the nation's current state are starting to wear down on him and he has begun taking to bed earlier each night. Fire Lady Wen has gone sick with worry for her husband's well being, and for the time Zihao has taken over council meetings in the War Room.

"Other nation's will begin to suspect soon enough. If we don't have this problem solved soon, we're liable to an attack."

One General states obviously, while the others in the room nod in agreement. Another General, across from the first suggests, "Perhaps we should call on Avatar Kuruk, he might know of an answer."

"No." Zihao cuts in, "The Avatar most likely already knows what is happening, if he cared he would've been here by now, but he's not. He most likely isn't coming. We need to figure out a solution on our own."

"My Lord," cuts in Da, "Perhaps we should consult the symbol of Ri, the fire spirit. I believe the eternal flame resides in the town in which your wife, princess Xia, once lived. Since she has a connection with the spirit, she might be able to find out what is happening with the spirit."

Zihao rubs his forehead for a long moment, contemplating Da's idea. After a while of thinking, and seeing no other solution, he slowly nodded his head to let the council know that the plan was accepted.

"Da, please ready a carriage and an escort for my wife and I. It seems we'll be visiting my in-laws."

Standing up and leaving the room, Zihao quickly makes his way to his room, where he hopes to find his wife. Luckily, Xia is in the room and so her husband doesn't have to go on a wild goose chase for her. Xia smiles to her husband when she sees him walk in and hands Peizhi to a maid that was standing near by. Walking into Zihao's arms, Xia asks, "Any progress?"

"A bit. It was suggested that we need to ask the sun spirit for advice, or something along those lines. So we'll be leaving for your old village today. Da thought maybe you'd be able to converse with the spirit since, well, since—"

"Since I was saved by Ri in the past."

"Right."

The couple was silent for a while longer, while Xia processed the news. Finally, she asks, "Will we be taking Peizhi?"

"Do you think he's ready to travel?"

"No, but I don't want to leave him. I suppose this moment had to happen sometime, though, right?"

Instead of responding, Zihao merely tightens his hold on her.

Soon Zihao and Xia were off inside of a carriage drawn by a couple of camelephants and made their way to the birthplace of the princess. They arrived at her parents house about three hours later. After the initial greetings, which included many hugs and kisses, the two royals headed out towards the shrine along with their guard. The walk over all took about thirty minutes, by the time they reached the base of the shrine, Zihao was panting with exhaustion.

"Zihao," Xia teases, "Are you that out of shape? Do I need to take up my old position as your master and begin your training all over again?"

"Oh, yes, master Xia."

He mumbles against her lips before kissing his wife softly on her lips. Xia blushes brightly at his words, and laughs soon after. They begin to walk into the shrine, hand in hand, when Xia gasps at the sight of the eternal flame of Ri. It is hardly staying alight and flickering dangerously. Zihao grabs Xia's hand and he slowly walks them over to the flame.

"What does this mean?" Zihao mutters.

"Ri's dying."

Shocked by this statement, Zihao looks over to his wife, eyes wide. The light in Xia's eyes are gone, and seem to be clouded over, as if in a trance. Cautiously, the princess takes a step toward the flame, her hand outstretched. The closer she gets, the stronger the flame seems to become, and the dizzier Xia starts to feel. With her hand almost touching the flame now, Xia's legs begin to feel week, her breathing becomes uneven and ragged. Zihao notices the change immediately and swiftly grasps her hand and pulls her away from the flame, which instantly dies down.

"Xia!"

Looking around her, surprised, Xis asks, "What happened?"

"Nothing. We're leaving. Come."

Zihao drags her out of the shrine all the way back to her parents house, while Xia stares round her, confused. When the reach the house, Zihao takes her aside into the room they will be sleeping in and sits Xia down on the bed.

"Xia, do you know what just happened back there?"

She looks up at him and blinks several times before answering simply, "No."

The prince signs and kneels down in front of his wife. "This was a bad idea. We never should have come here. Xia, we're leaving tomorrow—"

"—what about my parents?"

"They can accompany us, it doesn't matter. Xia, listen to me, I don't want you going back to the shrine."

"Why?"

"Something was happening to you in there. You were in some sort of trance. I—I didn't like it. Please, Xia, promise me you won't g back there."

"I—I promise, Zihao."

Zihao lets out what feels like the biggest sigh in his life and kisses Xia on the forehead. Playing with a strand of her hair, he leans in to kiss her, pushing her back onto the bed.

"I do believe your parents are out right now. We're all alone."

Xia blushes darkly at what he's implying. Not trusting her voice at the moment, she simply nods and leans up to kiss her husband.

0o0

"_Xia, Xia wake up. Please Xia, I need you to listen to me!"_

_ Xia opens her eyes and stills for a moment, confused by her surroundings. Where was she? Last thing she remembers was falling asleep in Zihao's arms. Now, however, she's surrounded by white smoke and can't seem to distinguish anything around her. _

"_Xia!"_

"_Whose there?"_

"_Xia, don't you know who I am?"_

_ Staring blankly out in the direction of the voice. Then it dawns on her, "Ri?"_

"_Yes, my child. The time has come, and I need your help."_

"_How can I help?"_

"_I gave you life as a child, and now that my own life is flickering, I need that life back."_

_ Xia's brows scrunch together. Was Ri asking what she thought he was? Surely not._

"_You...you want me to die?"_

"_Sadly, yes. Listen to me, child! I would not ask you unless it was necessary. I am _dying_, and if I die then so does the sun. Do you understand? There will be no more fire benders. Worse still, if the sun is gone then everyone will die. The world itself will cease to exist. I am not asking you out of selfishness, girl! I need your life to save thousands. The life of your husband, you people, you son...they all rest on your sacrifice."_

_ Xia sits in the smoke motionless for what feels like and eternity. "What do I need to do?"_

"_What you almost did earlier today. Return to the shrine and touch my flame. It will be painless, I promise you."_

_ The princess nods sadly, thinking back to Zihao's words and the promise she made him earlier. Seems like she won't be able to keep it after all. _

0o0

Xia wakes in the bed with a start. The sun-that-isn't begins to rise and the prodigy looks down at her husband, still asleep with his head on a pillow. Brushing a few stray strands away from his face, it takes every ounce of self control Xia has to stop herself from crying and thus waking her husband. She wishes they had brought Peizhi along so she could say good-bye to him, at least. Then again, seeing her child's face would most likely break her resolve.

Pulling on some clothes, Xia makes her way out of the home in which she grew up. After sending the guard at the house entrance off for some trivial task, the prodigy made her way back to the shrine, praying that no one saw her. It seems her prayers were answered, which was a bittersweet feeling, because she made it to the shrine with absolutely no complications.

Walking up to the flickering flame, Xia takes a shaky breath before reaching her hand out and placing her hand into the fire. Feeling a pull inside of her, Xia's sight began to blur. She thought, longingly, that she heard Zihao calling her name right before everything went dark and her body fell to the floor.

"Xia! No!"

Zihao yelled, dropping down to his wife's body. Picking her up, he rocked back and forth, tears threatening to fall.

"Xia, Xia, no, please, please come back. Come back, come back."

Eventually the guards came in and touched the prince on his shoulder. A gross sob erupted from Zihao's mouth before he stood up, Xia's body tucked neatly in his arms, and walked out of the shrine. Hissing in pain and closing his eyes, he feels blinded by the sun's brightness. The guard to Zihao's left lets out a statement, "It's the brightest day in Fire Nation history, I suppose."

"No." Zihao responds bitterly, beginning to walk back towards his in-laws house with his dead wife. "It's the darkest."

**A/N: Sad day, Xia's dead but the fire nation lives on. Well tell me what you think. I'm glad I finally finished this story. I took long enough, didn't I?**

**Pastry~**


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